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Goldilocks and the Three Nonprofits

March 7, 2016 by Dennis Fischman 4 Comments

just right

When are your communications just right?

Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Goldilocks.  She liked to give away money.

One day Goldilocks went exploring the forest of letters, email, and online posts she received.  She found herself in the house of three nonprofits.  She sat down at their table and sampled what they were offering.

She tasted the first nonprofit.  “Oh, this is too hot!” she exclaimed.  The nonprofit was sending her something every day, and all of it was peppered with funding appeals.

She tasted the second nonprofit.  “This is far too cold,” she realized.  The nonprofit was communicating with her only when it was asking for money.  And by the time she received a thank-you letter, she’d reached the bottom of the bowl.  She had no appetite for any more donations.

Goldilocks tasted the third nonprofit.  “Ahhh,” she breathed.  “This is just right!” Here was the porridge she’d been looking for.  The main ingredient was content that pleased her palate, spiced with a healthy dash of humor and with nuggets of information to chew on.  The funding appeals had absorbed the flavor of the dish and went down smoothly.

“Someone’s been eating my porridge,” Goldilocks heard a voice say.  There was the Communications Director of the third nonprofit, smiling.  And behind her was the Development Director, asking “Would someone like to sit in my chair at my next event?”

 

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Is Your Nonprofit Event as Exciting as a Blizzard?

February 15, 2016 by Dennis Fischman Leave a Comment

I live in New England, where people line up for ice cream in the middle of a snowstorm. This year, though, people are snow-shy. Every time the white stuff is in the forecast, people are remembering a month of being snowed in last winter.

The Blizzard of 2015 had great publicity, and it was all free. Can your nonprofit do as well?

A Storm of Free Media

A blizzard has no bank account. It has no marketing budget. Without paying a cent, however, the storm that hit New England on Tuesday had its own hashtag…and hundreds of unpaid photographers.

I went on Facebook one Tuesday morning last January and found this:

Car covered with snow

And this:

Clearing snowy street

And even this:

Dog looking at snow

The Secret of the Storm’s Success

It snows every year. Why do people rush out each time it snows and snap photos?

I think it’s because a storm is a shared event. By taking pictures and posting them, people say, “I was here. I was a part of this.”

Can You Do As Well as a Blizzard?

Are you making people feel that your events are shared events? When they attend your events, do they want to claim them and show they were there? You invite them to show up in person. Are you inviting them to show up online, with their photos?

 

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Are You Communicating Better This Year?

January 6, 2014 by Dennis Fischman 1 Comment

It’s a new year.  Here are ten resolutions that every organization should make to improve their communications in 2014.
  1. Google yourself. What are the first things people see about you? Would you support the group you see on screen?
  2. Take charge of your brand. Create your own reputation through the news you make and the stories you post.
  3. Cultivate local reporters.  They work too hard: if you feed them human interest stories and photos, they’ll be grateful.
  4. Everyone in your organization speaks for you.  What are they saying to their friends? Do they have stories to tell your supporters?
  5. Your website: keystone of all your communications.  Ask an outsider to click through it. Is it easy to navigate? Informative? Fun?
  6. Facebook is a party, not a meeting.  Find ways to get your fans talking with each other.  They’ll come back more often and like you better.
  7. Which social media should your group use?  Depends.  Who do you want to reach?  Where do they go when they’re online?
  8. Horror movie: “I mail to dead people.” In January, take people off your postal and email lists if you haven’t heard from them since 2011.
  9. Photos: not just for breakfast any more. Your readers want to consume photos at every meal, including online posts.
  10. Your good name is your most valuable asset.  What’s it worth to you?  THAT’S the return on investment for your communications.

 

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